The maror (bitter herbs) of the Passover Seder serves as a powerful metaphor for pain that deserves recognition but not permanent residence in us. In this practice for Passover, Cantor Kerith Spencer-Shapiro explores the spiritual tension between acknowledging life's bitterness and resisting the urge to let it consume us. In this short teaching and meditation, she guides us to sit with our "bitterness," our grief and pain, without being defined by it — discovering that the opposite of bitterness isn't forced cheerfulness, but spaciousness. She closes with Langston Hughes' "Mother to Son," a reminder that we are larger than the wounds we carry, and that liberation means continuing to climb even when the path is dark.
The meditation featured in this episode originally took place during the IJS Daily Online Meditation Sit on March 25, 2026. To join these FREE daily meditations live, sign up here.
Visit jewishspirituality.org to learn more about the Institute for Jewish Spirituality.